


The Definition of Overkill

by WriteThroughTheNight



Category: All For The Game - Nora Sakavic
Genre: Alternate Universe - Neighbors, First Meetings, Giant Spiders, Humor, M/M, Spiders
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-03-05
Updated: 2017-03-05
Packaged: 2018-09-28 09:21:50
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,576
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10085483
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/WriteThroughTheNight/pseuds/WriteThroughTheNight
Summary: "Neil's not shy about admitting that he's afraid of a lot of things.When you've lived the life he has, when every waking moment for a decade and a half has beenrun, hide, stay alive,it's a reasonable thing. If you're afraid, you're careful, and if you're careful you survive. But, in general, Neil's fears are pretty logical."ORNeil and Andrew are neighbors and spiders that big should be illegal.





	

**Author's Note:**

> Hello! This is just a little piece of fluff because this week sucked big time. Should I be working on my Big Bang? Probably. Am I? No.
> 
> Warning for spiders if that's not your thing. All mistakes are my own, and this is based of the prompt: "I was chilling in my room when you knocked on my window asking me if I could come kill a spider for you. I LIVE ON THE FIFTH FLOOR HOW WAS THE WINDOW A GOOD IDEA TO YOU."
> 
> Enjoy!

Neil's not shy about admitting that he's afraid of a lot of things. 

When you've lived the life he has, when every waking moment for a decade and a half has been _run, hide, stay alive_ , it's a reasonable thing. If you're afraid, you're careful, and if you're careful you survive. But, in general, Neil's fears are pretty logical. He's afraid of knives, enclosed spaces, fire, his father, his father's people, the people his father was working for-

More recently, Neil is afraid of dashboard lighters, being tied down, having his legs damaged- He's afraid of people seeing his scars and asking questions, and he's afraid of being real. All in all, pretty reasonable things.

Neil is not afraid of spiders. If when he was six or seven he'd scream at the sight of them, it was surely beaten out of him. If when he was fourteen or fifteen he complained about spiders crawling in his clothes, it was surely drilled into his head that there were worse things in the world, like his father, like his mother's anger-

Either way, Neil is not afraid of spiders. If one gets in his apartment, he's quick to dispatch it, usually with a swatted newspaper. He's only been living here for three months, but it's the nicest place he's ever stayed. There's a clean bed to sleep on, food in his fridge, and an inconspicuous job that he goes to faithfully, day after day. With his father in a grave and the Witness Protection Program shielding him from retribution, sometimes Neil almost feels safe. It doesn't mean he stops looking constantly over his shoulder, and it doesn't mean he stops checking exits, but it does mean that sometimes when his overeager coworker Matt asks Neil out for drinks, he accepts.

They'd gone out the previous night, and it had actually been fun. Matt's wife, Dan, was a fierce inferno of a woman, and their friend Allison from marketing had just the right amount of sass for Neil to enjoy her company. Renee, Allison's girlfriend, had set off all of Neil's danger warnings, but he had dealt with it for the night.

Now, the morning after, Neil regrets ever leaving his house.

Maybe, if he'd been home, he could've prevented this.

"This" is a spider. Spider isn't really a fair term for it though. It's the size of a dinner plate, huge and hairy and Neil has to hold in a scream. He's faced down the Butcher of Baltimore, been stabbed, shot, tortured, and much more. He thinks, given the choice between this spider and his father he- would still choose the spider, but he would at least stop to think about it.

It had been a good morning up to this point. The sun had woken him pleasantly early, and he'd felt relaxed and happy. Slipping on his running clothes, he'd been about ready to go for a jog, a strange warmth making his bones heavy in a good way.

And now, this. The worst part of the whole thing, Neil thinks, is that the spider is perched directly above the front door.

That's one exit down.

It looks like it's watching him. With its many, many eyes. Neil goes for the secondary exit, moving as fast as he can through the kitchen without taking his eyes off the spider in case it pounces.

The window slams shut after him with a resounding thud. Visible through the glass, the spider doesn't shift.

Neil catches his breath, leaning against the side of the building. His apartment is only three stories up, and the fire escape has served as his refuge the past three months. When the walls closed in on him, the weight of a brand new future far too much- this is when Neil retreated to the fire escape.

On reflex he glances up, checking to see if 5th floor is outside this morning too.

5th floor is the only other person Neil has seen out on the fire escapes. From what Neil can tell from the bad angle, 5th is blond, small, and overly fond of the color black. They've never spoken, even though 5th clearly knows Neil is there. He catches him staring only once, but Neil knows how to recognize eyes on his back. Their silence is almost companionable, and they end up sitting together more often than not. 

5th smokes far too many cigarettes, and Neil would judge him for it if he wasn't doing the same. The smell grounds him, reminds him of his mother and his promise to survive. Neil thinks 5th might even smoke the same brand.

Unfortunately, 5th isn't out there this morning. It's a bit early, but it's not unheard of for him to be awake.

Neil glances back through the window and the spider is still there. Watching him.

Mind made up, he clambers up the fire escape.

By the time he reaches 5th's window, he regrets the climb. What's he supposed to say? "Hey, I know we've never spoken and I don't even know your name, but could you come help me with the Godzilla spider in my apartment?"

Despite himself, Neil knocks. Through the glass he can see a kitchen that's neat, tidy, and chrome, a near perfect match for his own. When there's no movement in the apartment, Neil's stomach starts to sink. 5th might not even be home. What the hell does he do now? Does he call someone? Who would he even call? He can hear Matt laughing at him now.

Just as Neil is about to give up and resign himself to the embarrassment, a small, black-clad form stalks into the kitchen. It's definitely 5th. Neil would recognize that glower anywhere. He's strangely fascinating up close. There's a lot of muscle for such a short man, and definitely an air of danger in the sharp jaw. 

Then 5th rips the window open and says very, very calmly. "What the fuck do you want."

Neil opens and closes his mouth a few times, fumbling for the words. "There's a really big spider in my apartment."

5th slowly raises an eyebrow, expression not shifting in the slightest. "And."

Neil swallows his pride. "Could you help me kill it please?"

5th's expression shutters. "I don't like that word. Don't use it."

Neil frowns in confusion, a hand coming up to scratch at the scar tissue on his face. "Okay. Will you come?"

5th watches him for a long moment. "We are on the fifth floor," he says, blank. "What were you going to do if I didn't answer?"

Neil shrugs. "Call someone I guess."

5th stares at him a little longer and sighs. "I could shove you off this fire escape."

Neil stares at him hopefully. "I would take you down with me."

5th sighs even louder. "Okay. Move."

Obediently, Neil scrambles back down the fire escape. Against all expectations, 5th follows him. Back on his own landing, Neil checks through the window to make sure the monster hasn't moved. Nope. Still watching him with those creepy, creepy eyes.

Neil takes a deep breath and slides up his window, 5th following a respectable distance behind, one hand on his black armbands. Neil refuses to step away from the window, and 5th's eyes fix on the problem immediately. They widen slightly. "What the actual fuck."

Neil shrugs, looking at 5th while keeping the spider in his peripheral vision. "It was there when I woke up this morning."

"Bird-eating spiders are native to South America." 5th is staring intently at the spider, his voice slightly bemused.

"Escaped exotic pet?" Neil offers. 5th cuts him an unamused glare. They both look back at the spider and in response it moves a foot down the wall. With those long legs, it's only a single step. Neil tenses further, if it's possible. His weight shifts on the balls of his feet and he's ready to run. Even 5th looks unnerved, something hard around the corners of his eyes.

"Fuck this." 5th says flatly, and slides a blade out his armbands. Neil has flash of instinctive terror before the knife is flying across the room. It hits the spider right in the thick of its body and impales it into the wall. Watching it die, Neil thinks dimly that he's probably not getting the deposit back on the apartment.

5th watches its twitching stop with something bordering on satisfaction.

"I don't- thanks." Neil says weakly. Neither of them makes a move to retrieve the knife. 5th stares at him. Neil stares back. "Oh yeah. I'm Neil."

5th flicks his eyes away, adjusting his armbands. "Andrew."

It's awkward, now that there's no emergency. Neil tries to imagine what Matt would tell him to do. How to befriend someone after they basically save your life, Matt style.

"Could I buy you a coffee?"

Andrew's eyes swing back to his, something calculating in them. He looks Neil up and down, fixating on the messy scar tissue on his cheeks.

"Hot chocolate. There's a place a block from here. You have ten minutes." Andrew walks across the room and pries his knife out of the wall. The spider falls to the ground in a sloppy pile of limbs.

He disappears back onto the fire escape, and Neil half-smiles into his empty apartment.

Then he remembers he needs to get rid of the body and curses the impulse that ever made him knock on Andrew's window.


End file.
